


What I Wouldn't Do

by aizia



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-21
Updated: 2016-03-05
Packaged: 2018-04-05 10:00:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 1,825
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4175601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aizia/pseuds/aizia
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of canon compliant one-shots.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Distance and Mourning

**Author's Note:**

> Dialogue Prompt: _You know, it's okay to cry._

No one had asked Asami to speak, and so she hadn’t. Raiko had given a short speech, and after that, there wasn’t much else they could have done; they had no physical body to remember him with, and despite his sacrifice, most still saw Hiroshi Sato as a traitor. Few had been invited to the funeral.

And even then, Korra wasn’t there for Hiroshi, and she was painfully aware of that fact. At times, she had had trouble not hating him, even. She was there for his daughter, and lately, she’d been trying to see Hiroshi Sato from her eyes. 

Despite Korra’s attempts to reach out, she hadn’t once seen Asami lose her cool since the day Hiroshi was killed, and it was beginning to worry her. She could tell by her controlled expression that it was only a front. Asami was not fine, but the way she dealt with pain was to shove everything down and hope it never came to the surface. Korra had known her long enough to see that.

It was an hour after the funeral, on Air Temple Island, that Korra said the first thing to her in three days that felt right. 

She found her standing under one of the pavilions, arms drawn close to her. Asami smiled when she saw her, though it was quickly replaced by an expression that was almost blank.

“Hey,” Korra said, moving to stand beside her. 

“Hey.” 

Asami looked more distant than Korra had ever seen her. Taking her hand was almost instinctive, as if an attempt to keep her from floating away. Asami looked down at their hands together, and something in her gaze changed. There was a raw pain to it, her neutral mask crumbling. She pulled Korra close and almost fell against her. 

Korra swallowed, running a hand up and down her back. “You know, it’s okay to cry.”

And she did cry. Korra wasn’t sure how long she’d been holding her when Asami pulled away, eyes pink and make-up smudged.

“Thanks,” she said quietly. 

“You have to let people help you, Asami. Let _me_ help you. It’s not a burden, I promise. It’s much more of one watching you keep everything in.”

Asami nodded, staring at the ground. “We should go inside. It’s getting cold.”


	2. Waiting and Dancing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dialogue Prompt: _Oh my god. You're in love with her._

“Aren’t you going to dance with someone?” Jinora asked. Her cheeks were flushed slightly and her eyes were bright; Korra had seen her dancing with Kai earlier. 

“Of course. I already have.”

“Then why are you still on the dance floor?” Korra hesitated, and Jinora smirked. “So you’re waiting for someone in particular?”

Korra hoped she wasn’t blushing. “Sort of.”

Jinora narrowed her eyes at the small crowd of dancers. “It’s… it’s Asami, isn’t it? Oh my god. You’re in love with her.”

“Jinora–”

“No. no. Everything makes sense. I suspected it before, I guess, but… it’s so obvious, thinking about it now.” 

Korra didn’t make any attempts to deny it, and Jinora’s smile grew. “She’s free now. Go get your prissy, beautiful, elegant, rich girl.”

Korra gaped at her. “You _remember_ that?”

“I forget nothing.”

Korra rolled her eyes, turning around and seeking Asami’s general direction. 

“Good luck!” Jinora called once Korra was a few feet away, a little louder than necessary.


	3. Boats and Proposing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bryan Konietzko posted _Turtle Duck Date Night: The Rainbow Edition_ on his tumblr to celebrate today's SCOTUS ruling and it got me thinking: what if one of them had proposed on Turtle Duck Date Night?

Asami had waited for a clear, warm day, booked a turtle duck boat for the evening, and then hoped for the best.

Everything had to be perfect.

At 7 o’clock, Asami told Korra she had a surprise for her.

Korra rolled her eyes, her grin playful. “Spoiling me again?”

Asami smiled. “Maybe.”

 

*** * ***

 

The area was awash in golden light from Harmony Tower, the night quiet and the water still. A single boat waited at one of the docks; Asami took Korra’s hand and led her over.

“This is beautiful,” Korra said, stepping into the boat. Asami smiled.

“I was hoping you’d think that.”

 

*** * ***

 

The boat rocked gently, at a rate that was lulling and comfortable. Asami wondered idly if Korra had been calming the water with her bending.

“Let’s get married,” Korra said suddenly.

Laughter bubbled up from Asami’s chest before she could stop it. Korra gave her a look that was more confused than hurt. “Asami?”

“I was waiting for the perfect moment,” Asami said. “But I guess… I don’t see why that can’t be now.”

Asami took Korra’s hand, collecting her thoughts. This was the one part she hadn’t planned beforehand. Korra stared at her expectantly, eyes wide.

“When I first met you, I didn’t expect any of this. I don’t think you did, either,” Asami began, and Korra laughed.

“It happened slowly at first.” Asami took a breath. “Then one day I realized you meant everything to me. I couldn’t lose you. I surprised myself at the lengths I was willing to go; the things I was willing to do. I’d never fallen that hard before.”

A pause.

“And when you were gone, it never went away. I expected it to fade, or for it to at least get easier, but it didn’t.” Asami bit her lip and smiled. “I cried when your letter came in the mail; I missed you so much.”

By then, Asami could tell Korra was close to crying herself.

She swallowed. “I know it won’t always be easy. There will be good times and bad; I know. But if we go through it together, it doesn’t matter to me. Marry me, Korra.” Asami smiled. “If you want.”

“Did you really think I was going to say no?” Korra grinned through her tears. “Come here,” she said, and Asami complied, resting her head on Korra’s chest.

Korra kissed the top of her head. “Of course,” she said, her voice soft.


	4. Loving and Keeping

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place somewhere between Reunion and the finale.

 

“Korra?” Jinora started, looking up from her book.

“Mhm?”

“What’s it like to be in love?”

Korra smirked. “Is this about Kai?” she asked, keeping her voice low.

Jinora shrugged, almost defensive. “Maybe I’m just curious.”

Korra let herself ponder the question.

“When you’ve found someone who stays with you in your darkest time, and you know you’d do the same for them, you’ve found someone worth loving and keeping.”

Jinora looked at Korra expectantly, as if encouraging her to keep going.

“You feel safe with them – you’re comfortable being open and honest, and you know it’s okay to be vulnerable sometimes. They would never judge you for it. And you feel a need to protect them, even though you know you can’t always; and when you’re the one who causes her— them pain, it’s like you’re carrying a rock you can’t get rid of— ”

Jinora was smiling slightly, and Korra couldn’t decide if it was smug or sympathetic.

“I’m almost positive she loves you too, you know. She wasn’t herself when you were gone.”

Korra’s heart twisting painfully managed to override her shock, and Jinora seemed to realize what she had implied.

“It’s not your fault, Korra. I know Asami doesn’t hold a grudge for what happened. I think she’s just glad you’re here.”

Korra nodded, trying to ignore how much she hated having been a source of pain in Asami’s life. Even if it was justified.

“You just wanted to know if I had feelings for Asami, didn’t you?” Korra asked eventually, and Jinora had the decency to at least look guilty.

“For what it’s worth, I think you too would be good for each other,” Jinora said. “I already suspected something, but now that you’ve admitted to loving her…”

“This is just between you and me, okay? Until I can tell her.”

Jinora grinned and clasped her hands together. “You’re going to tell her?”


	5. Warm and Weary

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A one-shot that fills a few of the prompts I received last week.

Asami lay in bed awake, curtain open. Streetlights burned the dark sky orange, bathing the room in artificial twilight. 

Her body was exhausted, worn down by long days and short nights. It was her mind that refused to fall into sleep; the possibility of Korra coming back before morning, how deeply Asami hoped and ached for it, kept her awake. _Any day now,_ Korra had written in her last letter, four days earlier.

Later, in the quiet of the night, Asami felt rather than heard a presence. She gingerly got to her feet, rubbed out a kink in her shoulder, and padded to the living room. Her wife stood leaning against the sofa, staring intently at nothing.

“Hey,” Asami said, hardly above a whisper. 

Korra smiled, weary and warm. “I didn’t wake you up, did I?”

Asami pulled her close. “No,” she said, words muffled in Korra’s hair.

It took Asami approximately four steps on the way to their bedroom to notice something off in Korra’s usual gait. Without conscious effort, she had memorized the way in which she moved; twenty-five years of knowing her had taught her each movement pattern, each nervous tick, each push and pull of muscle. 

“You’re limping.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re not.” 

Korra didn’t protest. Asami wrapped an arm around her shoulders until they reached the bed, where Korra shrugged off her shirt and eased into Asami's lap. Asami rubbed and kneaded her shoulders until Korra loosened and let out small sighs. She held Korra’s waist and kissed each shoulder, basking in her solidity.

“I missed you,” Asami said.

“I missed you, too,” Korra said, playing with the hands around her waist. “I wish I didn’t have to be gone for so long.”

“Maybe you don't have to be.”

Korra sighed.

“I know,” Asami said. “But you’re hurting, Korra. You’re not twenty-five anymore, and the world doesn’t expect you to act like it. Your role is important, but you need to take care of yourself, too. You shouldn’t have to come home like this.”

“I can't just watch the world fall apart if it needs me.”

“There are capable people who could step in at times. Small criminals, manual work, rebuilding projects; those things can be handled. The world hasn't been on the verge of falling apart for decades, because of you. You've done so much already.”

For a moment Korra was quiet, considering.

“I hate seeing you beaten down like this,” Asami said.

“I used to feel that I was unworthy of being the Avatar if I wasn't doing enough. The doubt comes back, sometimes.”

Asami traced the two large scars on Korra’s back with her thumb. “You’ve done more than enough.” 

Korra leaned back against her, as if a weight had left her shoulders. “I’m getting old, aren’t I?”

“You _are_ going a little grey,” Asami teased, running her hands through Korra’s hair.

Korra shook her head. “My own wife.”

Asami laughed, maneuvered herself into a horizontal position, and pulled Korra down with her. “You’re not alone. I found a couple of my own the other day.”

“Asami aging? Nah.”

She hummed. “You better believe it.”

Moments passed in silence before Korra kissed her, gentle and slow. “I’m alright with growing old as long as it’s with you,” she mumbled into her neck.

Asami had her first sound sleep in weeks.


End file.
